Boys and girls pointed, cheered and covered their ears yesterday as hundreds of motorcycles thundered into the parking lot behind the Kennedy Krieger Institute on Greenspring Avenue in Baltimore.

Jimmy McHenry, a 16-year-old inpatient at the institute, marveled at the parade of chrome and custom paint jobs, while the younger children seemed most excited when the last bike pulled in towing a red sleigh piled high with toys.

"It really gives the kids a time to come out and have a good time," said McHenry, who watched over some of the smaller patients as if they were younger siblings. "You know how hard it is for them to cope and all."

The institute treats children with autism, cerebral palsy and other disabilities of the brain.

Each of the nearly 20 patients on hand received at least one early Christmas present, thanks to more than 350 motorcyclists who participated in one of the season's first toy drives.

Piles of other presents were left for children who could not attend.

Several of the kids had an opportunity to mingle with bikers, honk horns or try on helmets. When one girl with an oxygen tank mentioned to a leather-clad rider that she liked the stuffed bear at the top of the pile of goodies, he got it for her immediately.

Gary Stahl, 52, of Baltimore saw the way such acts affected his fellow riders.

"You bring all of these kids out here, and you see some of these big, bad riders get choked up," Stahl said.

He and Rich Bernard of Jarrettsville, 42, said they prefer this interaction to less-personal opportunities for giving.

"This toy drive isn't like the rest of them," said Bernard, who had pulled the sleigh behind his 2001 Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic. "We pull up here, and these kids get the toys right now."

The drive was started in 1999 by April Darchicourt, 40, of Baltimore.

She and her husband had been active members of the area's motorcycle community long before their daughter, who had been a patient at the institute, died in 1999.

That first year, the event attracted nearly 100 riders. Each year it has grown.

Darchicourt had hoped that 1,000 bikers would participate this year in the ride, which began at the Harley-Davidson dealership in Rosedale and traveled to the institute with a police escort. But she was pleased with the turnout.

"This is my way of helping the kids," Darchicourt said. "It eases my pain."

Even more than the gifts, McHenry enjoyed having his brother snap pictures of him in front of his favorite three-wheeled Harley-Davidsons.

"I'm a trike fan," he said. "They're one of my favorite things."